LAHORE, Oct 16: The current crisis of surplus sugar may affect wheat sowing on 200,000 to 400,000 hectares if the issue is not handled forthwith and sugar producers persevere with their decision to delay crushing till Dec 10.
“The area that is likely to be affected by a delay in the start of crushing of sugar cane, is large enough to produce around 1.5 million tons of wheat,” a senior agriculture department official told this reporter here on Thursday. He said: “Punjab will be the worst affected, followed by Sindh, and to a certain extent the NWFP.”
However, the official hurriedly clarified: “It does not mean that wheat will not be sown at all on such a large area. It means that wheat sowing is going to be delayed if the factories do not start crushing sugar cane by the middle of next month, and the standing crop of sugar cane is not harvested to prepare land for the next crop. Late wheat sowing means that growers will get a lesser yield.”
Sugar cane is sown on over one million hectares, two-thirds in the Punjab. On an average, mills crush cane grown on slightly over 200,000 hectares each month during their five-month crushing season, vacating land for the next crop of wheat. “If they do not start their operation next month, an area between 200,000 and 400,000 hectares will not be available for sowing wheat,” the official said. Last year, the mills started crushing sugar cane in the Punjab in the last week of November and in Sindh in December because of the same reason of surplus stocks, affecting wheat yield.
The sugar producers have already announced commencement of crushing in Punjab and Sindh from Dec 15 with a view to disposing of a major chunk of carryover stocks and improving the depressed local prices.
They say the mills would have 436,750 tons of unsold sugar on Nov 1, which is likely to keep the prices under pressure.
So far, the sugar manufacturers appear determined to persevere with their decision in spite of the statement made by the federal food minister that the “government would make the producers start crushing sugar cane from Nov 1”.
It may be mentioned here that producers can delay crushing of sugar cane till as late as Nov 30 under the Cane Act of 1950. But, the producers admit, it would not be lawful to delay crushing beyond that day. “Yet we have no option but to delay crushing due to the huge unsold surplus stock lying with us,” the Punjab PSMA chairman told Dawn the other day.
The sugar production next year is expected to increase to 4.03 million tons from current year’s over 3.7 million, which means an additional surplus of 600,000 million. “In view of the present unsold stocks and the expected huge surplus next year who do you say would like to begin crushing in November? It’s simply against the principles of economics,” he said.
He said the mills were already losing money and an early start of crushing would add to their woes. “The government needs to come out with a permanent sugar policy. Adhocism will no longer work,” the PSMA leader said.
He also pointed out to the proposal advanced by them seeking a mechanism and government assistance for helping them export their surplus of around half a million tons on self-finance basis. “If the government does so, the industry would come out of the crisis and begin the crushing operation next month.”
He said the mills had not produced the surplus stocks by their own choice. “We cannot close our mills under the Sugar Factories Control Act 1964 as long as there is sugar cane on the fields. It is the government that fixes the sugar cane support price. When we’re neither allowed to control our production nor the prices of inputs, we’re justified in seeking government’s help in time of crisis. We are not asking for a subsidy. We are just asking that the government collects money from us on our behalf and exports our surplus. What is wrong with that,” he replied while answering a question.
Meanwhile, the federal government has invited the PSMA for a dialogue to discuss the problem in Islamabad on Friday.